Next has awarded Hermes a new eight year contract described as “the biggest ever home delivery deal within the UK”. Under the new agreement, Hermes will continue to handle the delivery requirements for Next Directory, which has turnover of over £800 million and over 2.2 million active customers. It will also launch a range of service enhancements to ensure the retailer remains at the forefront of the home delivery market.
Next has been using Hermes for home deliveries since 1988 but the decision to award the new, exclusive contract was only given after Next had conducted a review of the UK home delivery market.
Consignments are to be collected on a daily basis from Next’s distribution centres and dispatched overnight to Hermes’ regional depot network. From there, orders will be distributed to more than 7,500 ‘lifestyle couriers’ for delivery to households across the UK.
“By extending this contract until 2018, Next have shown the high level of faith they have in Hermes and our ability to continue to provide them with a market leading service which provides excellent value for money,” says Carole Woodhead, CEO of Hermes in the UK. “We will be working together with Next to launch a new suite of services over the next 12 months that will ensure that Next remains the standard bearer in the UK home delivery market — a position they have held since the launch of the Next Directory in 1988.”
